


Four

by basslined



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2016-09-12
Packaged: 2018-08-14 14:25:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8017486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/basslined/pseuds/basslined
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Ryuu.”</p><p>Tanaka startles and turns around quickly to face him so he can give him his full attention, shirt bunched up under his arms as he pauses in his attempt to put it on. He’s met with an intense gaze, one that sends a chill down his spine and causes his skin to prickle with goosebumps. He knows whatever Noya has to say is going to be serious.</p><p>“What's up…?”</p><p>Tanaka’s chest tightens when Noya’s gaze falls to the floor. “Asahi-san isn't our ace anymore.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Four

**Author's Note:**

> I've had most of this written since, like...June. Jeez! I wanted to run with the '#4 is usually reserved for the Ace' theme a bit. It's always been curious to me that Noya wears it! I hope it's touched upon at some point. 'Til then, here's my take on things. \:3/
> 
> As always, thanks to Yuki for being my proof-reader! <3

The Karasuno Volleyball Club is positively _buzzing_ this year. After such a successful previous season, there had been much greater interest in the team this fall. Their hard work and tenacity as a team really paid off.

“Alright, let's line up,” Ennoshita calls out.

All of the new first year hopefuls scurry into place beside their seniors - they all look nervous, even the more serious ones, Tanaka notes as he walks down the line of them to size them up. He figures he can probably weed out the weak-willed ones with nothing but pure intimidation if he tries, but that plan backfires pretty fast; he's got a soft spot for all of them, just like he had with the first years the year before.

“Looks like a good crowd!” he says as he makes his way to Ennoshita’s side. It'll be hard to pick from them to fill the open slots, for sure.

“As you're already aware, I’m your Captain, Ennoshita Chikara. Beside me, your Vice Captain–”

“Tanaka Ryuunosuke! But you can all call me Tanaka-senpai,” he interrupts, pointing to himself with both thumbs as he puffs out his chest. Noya’s excited whoop and yell of ‘ _So cool, Ryuu!!_ ’ answers him and they share a large grin as the new recruits jolt from the sound of it. Too easy.

Ennoshita grabs the back of Tanaka’s shirt to rein him in and the quiet snickering from the crowd causes a dusting of pink to settle high on his cheeks and the tops of his ears. He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly as their captain continues. “I apologize for the interruption. We’ll continue with some drills this week and end with a set of practice matches on Thursday. It’ll help us to assess who among you will be selected for our roster. I want to reassert that all of you have potential, but due to the overwhelming demand and few slots to fill...well, I hope that you all understand.

After we make our selections, we’ll collect measurements and hand out your practice jerseys on Friday before we start. Current members, you’ll get your regular jerseys. You can take them home or leave them in your lockers, the choice is up to you. Just make sure not to lose them.”

Tanaka stretches his arms above his head, sighing happily as his shoulders loudly pop back into place. He swings them back down, giving the first years another once-over. “Give it your best!!”

The entire group shouts out in unison before beginning to disperse and Tanaka can't help but think how long a week it's going to be. Exciting, absolutely, but the thought of having to turn away so many aspiring hopefuls makes him feel guilty. He remembers how excited he was to show his stuff, how great it felt to make it easily into the starting lineup. Knowing he has to turn away someone who would feel the same way he did _his_ first year just makes him feel  _bad_.

He doesn't even notice when Noya sneaks up on him until he's nearly bent in two under the weight suddenly splayed across his back and shoulders. Tanaka recollects himself quickly, tucking his arms under the bend of Noya’s knees and readjusting him. “Y’scared me, dude!”

Noya’s arms easily find their way around Tanaka’s neck. “Heh, sorry. You had that look on your face like somethin’ was bothering you, so I thought I'd help you get over it.”

Tanaka smiles, breathing deeply as he attempts to get through the fluttering he feels against the inside of his ribs. He doesn't need Noya to prompt him for an answer, “Thanks. I guess I’m just not lookin’ forward to turning any of ‘em away, y’know?”

Noya nods sagely, hair tickling the side of Tanaka’s cheek as he does. “They're all so eager. You’ll figure it out, though, Ryuu! You’ve got Chikara to help you! And me, of course, for an outsider’s opinion.”

“Yeah, you're right! It’ll be fine.” He fishes around in the pockets of his jacket for the keys so he can lock up the gym, careful not to jostle Noya around too much as he does.

Noya’s right, though: there's nothing to worry about. They’ll figure things out and the team will be stronger. Plus, this year, he and Noya are going to be _unstoppable_. They get to show off to the new underclassmen, mentor them, and just generally be The Best Senpais ever! What more could he ask for, honestly?

It was gonna be awesome.

 

* * *

 

 

The week goes in a flash. By the conclusion of Thursday’s practice matches, they've chosen their four new players: three first years and a second year who had missed Monday’s meeting.

Tanaka’s by himself in the locker room, half an hour earlier than everyone else. It's his new usual now that he's been appointed to his leadership position. He’s so caught up in all of the things they have to cover today - proper introductions, measurements, passing out the different sets of uniforms, handing out practice schedules, and getting the new players acquainted with Coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei, just to name a few - that he doesn't even hear Noya come in behind him (another new normal for him, it would seem).

“Ryuu.”

Tanaka startles and turns around quickly to face him so he can give him his full attention, shirt bunched up under his arms as he pauses in his attempt to pull it on. He’s met with an intense gaze, one that sends a chill down his spine and causes his skin to prickle with goosebumps. He knows whatever Noya has to say is going to be serious.

“What's up…?”

Tanaka’s chest tightens when Noya’s gaze falls to the floor. “Asahi-san isn't our ace anymore.”

Well _that_ came out of nowhere. He lets out a shallow exhale, not liking where this conversation is headed. Noya had already left the team once because of Asahi, something that wasn't lost on Tanaka; he knew the potential significance of that action, what it could mean below the surface. Noya hadn't wanted to play without Asahi, didn't want to admit that there could be another to replace him, that they could win without his spikes. He knew Noya didn't want to play without _his_ ace, someone Tanaka had reluctantly accepted wasn't going to be him.

It was a string of thoughts that'd made his stomach hurt, that had lit a jealous fire underneath his skin more than once - still, when he thinks about it - _if_ he thinks about it. And he is, now; he can feel that familiar tension beginning to form between his shoulders, the knots pulling taut at his back and neck. That sweet discomfort he came to resent so much a year ago is crashing back over him in violent, rapid waves and he tries his best to squash it.

He finally tugs his t-shirt down in one harsh motion, voice surprisingly steady as he feigns normalcy. “Yeah, so?”

“ _So,_ I don't need this anymore. Here,” he offers, holding a barely-closed garment box out for Tanaka to take.

“What is it?” he asks hesitantly, but he’s pretty sure he already knows. When he opens the box, his fear is confirmed: it's Noya’s jersey, the bright orange of which stares back at him, almost mockingly.

He sets it down on the bench beside him, chewing at the inside of his cheek as he tries to formulate what it is he wants to say. This was the _last_ thing he'd expected to deal with today - it wasn't even on his list of stuff! But he’s supposed to be able to think on his feet, to handle these kinds of situations with a level head - he’s vice captain of the team now! - except this...well, this is different. This is his best friend, this is his most important person, this is _Noya_.

Noya tilts his head to the side, scanning Tanaka’s face. He hurriedly cuts his friend off when he sees him open his mouth to say something. “You can’t leave the team again,” he blurts out, “I don’t - it’s like, uh - Fuck, dude, this was supposed to be our _year_ , y’know? We were ‘sposed to tear up the court together, dynamic duo, that sorta shit. Like, even more than last year! ‘Cause last year...Look, if you leave before the season even starts, we can’t–”

Tanaka keeps rambling and Noya looks at him like he’s sprouted an extra limb from the side of his head. One quick punch in the shoulder effectively shuts him up, though. “What? No, idiot. I’m not leavin’.”

Tanaka rubs at where Noya’s fist connected, blinking at him. “I don’t follow,” he admits after a moment, pointing back to the box. “Then why’d you give me that?”

“Because I specifically asked Daichi-san for that jersey when we started our first year. I wanted to wear it so it wouldn’t just go to anybody, get me?” It’s pretty obvious that no, Tanaka doesn’t get it. Noya rolls his eyes, lips twitching up at the corners as he does. “Like, it’s pretty standard for most teams to have their ace wearin’ the number four jersey, right? Well, I wanted to be the one to pick our ace. Pretty unorthodox request. Definitely took Daichi-san by surprise, considerin’ I was some first-year brat.”

“Unorthodox. Nice vocab word,” Tanaka croaks out, earning a laugh from Noya. The sound makes his heart flip, just like it usually does. He’s still confused, though, the tone of his voice gently laced with somber uncertainty. “I still don’t really get it, though. I mean...you did pick? From like, the very first time you saw Asahi-san spike our first year, you were totally in awe. _He_ was your ace. Even up ‘til they all graduated last year, it never seemed like you’d been disappointed in your choice, not once. You wouldn’t even play without him, so like, it was pretty cut ‘n dry, right? We all knew, we all accepted it.”

He can see the gears turning in Noya’s head and, not for the first time in his life, Tanaka feels incredibly small in his presence. That feeling is almost instantly squashed when he opens his mouth again, though. “I never really thought about it like that.”

Noya says it so genuinely that Tanaka can’t help but laugh at him. “Are you for real?!”

“Well, I mean, I _guess!_ ” he huffs. “It’s just...Asahi-san is really cool, he has a lot of power behind him. It’s kinda like...I got to see him from a different perspective. Not just ‘cause I was always watching his back, literally, but in general? ‘Cause he’s so different off the court. When he played, it was just... _wow_ , y’know?

Like, he’d hit Suga-san’s toss and it’d be like _boom!_ And then Kageyama’s, too, it was always _ba-bam!!_ Wicked loud - it really got me pumped up! To think it was Asahi-san, of all people, to make me feel like that!! Man, I’d laugh in somebody’s face if I hadn’t seen and felt it myself.”

Tanaka can’t quell the upward twist of envy in his stomach again; it’s not that he’d never heard Noya talk about Asahi before, but this time he just sounds so enamored as he recalls it. “I figured if I could see that, so could the rest of the team. That like, we just had to nurture him a lil’ bit and he’d get more confident. Maybe get past all the hang ups and shit he had outside of games. I thought, _‘if I quit the team too, he’ll come back. It’ll show him how much he means to me, to everybody._ ’ Except we know how that turned out. Without Shouyou breakin’ through to him somehow, I don’t think he’d ever have had the stones to walk back into this gym.

I mean, yeah, I forgave him - he gave me what I needed so that I could and to like, move on. I still saw what I did in the beginning, that he had so much unbridled potential and that he was fuckin’ amazing - and he proved it the rest of the season, too. I just wanted to support him, make him feel like he didn't hafta run away again, that like, he could stand up proud with the knowledge that I wouldn't let him fall down like that again.”

“Yeah...we all did our best to make him feel that way, as a team.” Noya nods sharply in agreement. “But that still doesn’t answer my question.”

“I’m getting there! Jeez, so fuckin’ impatient,” he teases, nudging Tanaka’s shoulder with his hand and snickering when he winces - it’s still sore from his earlier jab. “Anyway, yeah, I saw a lot and I wanted to bring it out. He was the ace, my ace. But he also _wasn’t_ , y’feel me?”

“Clearly not!” he grinds out.

“Fuck’s sake, dude! Do I gotta spell it out for you, or what!!” Noya rests his hands on his hips before standing up on his toes to lean in so close that their noses nearly touch. Tanaka’s breath catches in his throat and it takes everything he has not to choke. “I saved that number for _you_ , Ryuu. You’re my choice,” Noya says matter-of-factly, fondness tightly hugging the edges of his words.

“Wait, wait, wait - rewind.” His eyes close and he exhales slowly through his nose as he tries to process what his best friend’s just said. “Seriously?”

“ _Duh_. Since like, the first time you told me you liked volleyball, I knew you were gonna be my ace someday. Like you said, dynamic duo! I mean, sure, Asahi-san might’ve filled that role for a little while, but it’s always been meant for you. Did you know that I always used to tell him he should be more like you? He’d get this dumb look on his face every time, like I was speakin’ to him in a different language or something. It was _hilarious_ ,” he says as he tips his head back to cackle.

Every ounce of tension snaps at once, immediately releasing through his skin and evaporating into the air as he steps forward and wraps his arms around Noya’s shoulders, an action that calms Noya’s laughter. “You can’t do this kinda shit to me, dude! I seriously thought you were gonna walk out on me again,” he breathes out, fighting to swallow down the hard lump that'd formed in his throat when he feels Noya’s hands rubbing gently up and down his back.

“Thanks. I seriously...I don’t even know what to say, just...thanks,” Tanaka mumbles against his shoulder and he can practically feel Noya’s radiant grin without even having to see it.

“Make me proud, Mr. _Vice Captain_ ,” he says, amusement present in his voice when they finally part - much too soon, in Tanaka’s opinion - and Noya motions to someone behind them.

Ennoshita steps in with their new uniforms in hand: number four for Tanaka and his old number five for Nishinoya, now reimagined in that signature orange.

He does his best to will away the overwhelmed tears stinging at the corners of his eyes as he shouts in false devastation, “You were in on this, too?! How _dare!_ What kinda captain are you!”

Ennoshita simply rolls his eyes as he hands over the jerseys to his teammates. “One who can keep secrets when asked.” Repeatedly asked - and bribed, truthfully. Noya had been thorough, not that it'd even been necessary, but Noya's always been over-the-top about everything, especially if it involved Tanaka.

“There are no secrets between captain and vice captain, Chikara - we’re supposed to have a bond of openness and trust! Like Noya-san and I!!” Tanaka instinctively wraps an arm tightly around Noya’s shoulders when he says this. He earns a snicker from Noya, who only presses himself further into his side.

“I don't think anyone will ever have a bond as strong as yours,” Ennoshita responds, shaking his head. “There's not much time before practice starts, so hurry up and change.”

“Man, you're already filling Daichi-san’s shoes so well.”

“Yeah, Chikara. You're like, the spitting image,” Noya echoes.

Ennoshita lets out an exasperated sigh before leaving the two of them to it, ignoring the thundering sound of their joined laughter throughout the locker room as he does.

Tanaka retracts his arm and they part, changing into their new uniforms. He can't help but take an extended look at himself in the wall mirror, turning to this side and that so he can take in every angle. It still feels like a dream to be wearing this number. The Ace’s number, the one he’s always wanted to represent. It's almost too much for him.

Noya sneaks up behind him for the second time in under thirty minutes, standing up on the tips of his toes to rest his chin against Tanaka’s shoulder so he can take a look, too. He smooths a hand over the large, white number four emblazoned across Tanaka’s chest and shoots their reflections one of his blinding, hundred-watt grins. “It really suits you, Ryuu!”

Tanaka can't help the heat that creeps up his neck, extending all the way to the very top of his head. “Y-yeah? You think so?”

“I _know_ so!” He gives Tanaka a little squeeze then, causing his cheeks to darken another three shades of red further. Noya just laughs against his shoulder blade and Tanaka could swear he'd felt him press his lips there gently and ever-so-briefly. Too much hopeful imagination, probably. Right? Right. “Now c’mon, before we give Chikara his first aneurysm of the year.”

“It's too early for that, you're right,” Tanaka jokes in turn, despite how bashful he suddenly feels. “I’ll be right behind ya, okay?”

He watches Noya leave ahead of him, waiting until he's out of sight before he turns back to the mirror. Letting out a shaky breath, he slaps his cheeks roughly, trying as best as he can to calm his racing heartbeat. Noya really is _something_. What exactly, he's not sure, but he does know that this year really, truly was going to be _awesome_.

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on tumblr (mokuba) and twitter (@mokubah)! \\(*^o^*)/


End file.
